Repeated Usage of an L3 Motorway Chauffeur: Change of Evaluation and Usage

Abstract

Most studies on users’ perception of highly automated driving functions are focused on first contact/single usage. Nevertheless, it is expected that with repeated usage, acceptance and usage of automated driving functions might change this perception (behavioural adaptation). Changes can occur in drivers’ evaluation, in function usage and in drivers’ reactions to take-over situations. In a driving simulator study, N = 30 drivers used a level 3 (L3) automated driving function for motorways during six experimental sessions. They were free to activate/deactivate that system as they liked and to spend driving time on self-chosen side tasks. Results already show an increase of experienced trust and safety, together with an increase of time spent on side tasks between the first and fourth sessions. Furthermore, attention directed to the road decreases with growing experience with the system. The results are discussed with regard to the theory of behavioural adaptation. Results indicate that the adaptation of acceptance and usage of the highly automated driving function occurs rather quickly. At the same time, no behavioural adaptation for the reaction to take-over situations could be found.

Keywords

• behavioural adaptation
• sae l3 motorway chauffeur
• system usage
• acceptance
• attention
• secondary task